The body of a Dublin-born soldier serving with British forces in Iraq will arrive in Britain tomorrow.
Lance Corporal Ian Malone died in combat in Basra on Sunday April 6th when the 1st Battalion of the Irish Guards came under sniper fire while trying to secure a vital gateway to the city. Another member of his battalion was injured.
Originally from Ballyfermot, Lce Corp Malone (28), featured on the RTE television series, True Lives, in which he explained his reasons for serving in the British army, saying Irishmen had died in the past, "to give men like me the freedom to choose what to do".
The RAF C17 flight from Iraq containing Lce Corp Malone's remains is expected to arrive at Brize Norton at lunchtime tomorrow. The coffin will be received by a member of the Royal Family and representatives of the Service Chiefs of the Irish Guards.
Funeral arrangements have not yet been released.
He is survived by his mother May, his father, Joseph, three sisters, Michelle, Carol and Deborah, a younger brother, Edward, and by his German girlfriend, Sarah Wolter.